Autumn Color on the Creek

Autumn is flirting with us here in the upper Midwest. Trees here and there are fading from green to yellow or golden, and once in awhile you see a red fringe on maple leaves and sumac. A few days this time of year ia all that it takes for the colors to cascade into a myriad of shades of yellows, reds, oranges, and so on. 

"Across the Creek," watercolor, about 11x8

This watercolor is a view from my studio into the woods across Druid Hill Creek. I stood at my work table and made a rough sketch with soft graphite. After that I charged right in with watercolor. This time I was testing some synthetic watercolors called Qor ("core") that are considerably more opaque than traditional watercolors because of their artificial binder. Traditional colors are compounded with gum arabic, which holds less pigment than the synthetic these are made with. That means these paints have a considerably higher pigment concentration, hence more opacity. That allows darker values. You can actually layer lighter colors over darker ones with these paints, too.

Travel Sketch

"The Kasbah, Tangier," watercolor with ink

For many years I've kept a travel diary with sketches, or simply made a group of sketches, when we've gone on short or extended trips. This particular sketch is one of a group of postcard-size watercolors I made during a Mediterranean cruise. During a shore excursion in Tangier we visited the Kasbah, a storied quarter of the city that is very much the same as it has been for centuries. The streets are too narrow and convoluted for automobiles, many too narrow ever for motorbikes. The light plays through the complex architecture and lights corners and windows. The blue is a very common color.  

As I often do, I mailed this one to a friend back in the States, making it not only an artwork but an artifact, complete with stamp. 

Early Fall

"Early Fall, Druid Hill Creek," watercolor on paper, 5x7

This new watercolor was done from the window of my home studio, looking north along the course of "my" creek. Unlike many other watercolors posted here, I didn't use ink but instead employed fine-pointed studio brushes instead of the waterbrushes I use in the field. I did rough in a bit of graphite, mostly to define tree trunks and the railing on the left. Otherwise when line work was needed I mixed a near-black and employed brushes to carry an intensely dark pigment load. Using a sharply pointed brush made forming leaf shapes and thin lines much easier.

Tree Study

"Across the Courtyard." wc/ink on paper, ~8x11

This ink and watercolor study of two trees in the courtyard of a condominium complex came about on an idle afternoon during a recent trip. The different trunks, foliage, and coloring between the two trees--a confier on the left and a deciduous tree on the right--was the main interest. 

 

Late Afternoon

"Late Afternoon Used Cars," wc/ink on paper

This watercolor was done sitting across the street from a used car lot that was in partial shade. The two cars were nearly antiques. One is a 1960 Chevrolet and the other a Mustang from the mid-1960s. In those days I used a pocket sketchbook measuring about 3.5x5.5 so I could carry it in a pocket. The remainder of my sketching gear then included a waterbrush, a swatch of paper towel, and a small metal paintbox that would fit in a pocket. A light set like that was extremely convenient and I still carry very little when outside. 

 

West End

"Coffee Bar, West End Salvage," wc/ink on paper, 8x10

Last weekend the sketch group decided to stay indoors owing to rainy weather. Using my newest sketchbook, which lays completely flat, I did this watercolor and ink sketch. Each page of this particular book is 8x8 inches, and you can work across the flat joint that would be called the gutter in other sketchbooks. 

The site of this one is West End Salvage, an architectural salvage business that also has a coffee bar and tables where we often sketch. Besides it's ground floor there are four more floors of salvage archtectural details--everything from windows to light fixtures to antique signs--so there's ample material for any of our group. 

As always, this was done in a standard sequence of graphite sketch, watercolor, ink detail. 

Doug

"Doug," oil on panel, 14x11

The man in this portrait was a lifelong smoker of cigarettes who developed lung disease and respiration failture when in his seventies. This particular life study was done perhaps a decade before his illness became severe, but there is something sad and also inevitable about his looks even before he became ill. 

Most portraits are joyful, or at least happy, but sometimes the deeper issues in the life of the sitter come to dominate. Carefully observed portraits can sweep back the mask of normalcy.